Best Screenwriting Contests to Supercharge Your Career in 2019

Many screenwriters got their big breaks from winning one of the best screenwriting contests. But there are so many out there it can be hard to know which are duds and which might kick-start your career.

Not all screenplay contests are created equal. From what we’ve seen over the years, there are actually very few that are worth mentioning in a query letter. Or that can open any doors.

Rather than spending a small fortune sending your screenplay off to a dozen competitions, do some thorough research and be super-selective on which ones you enter.

Below you’ll find the top ten, very best screenwriting contests in 2019 we believe can actually advance your career.

And don’t forget to download our free Screenwriters’ Calendar which lists all the screenwriting competitions below, as well as the best festivals, fellowships and labs.

Best Screenwriting Contests #2: Austin Screenwriting Competition

This screenwriting contest continues to open doors by creating a networking system for new writers to further their career within the industry.

Industry professionals recognize the Austin Film Festival as one of the best screenplay contests in 2019, with representatives from agencies and production companies participating in the judging process.

Best Screenwriting Contests #3: ScreenCraft Screenplay Contest

What makes ScreenCraft one of the best screenwriting talent-discovery organizations around is the fact that entrants have a wide range of genre-specific competitions to choose from when submitting their script.

These include action/adventure, drama, comedy, horror, family-friendly and more. This means the prizes and readers are much more focused and in tune with the writers’ sensibilities, and each Hollywood jury is tailored to the genre.

The annual ScreenCraft Screenwriting Fellowship accepts feature film screenplays and TV pilots. It’s an effective program at launching careers of emerging screenwriters.

Past winners have gone on to sign with agents at CAA, WME and UTA write for Netflix, Blumhouse, CBS and Millennium Entertainment. Winners and finalists of ScreenCraft’s competitions have come from all over the world.

Deadlines and Entry Fees

♦ Rotating throughout the year. Click the link below for full information.

Contest Prizes
Each ScreenCraft genre-specific contest is unique, but all of them feature cash prizes and career-launching introductions to entertainment industry professionals.

This is an annual, international feature and television screenwriting contest designed to launch the careers of aspiring writers, hosted by Final Draft. Big Break rewards screenwriters with over $80,000 in cash and prizes, including a trip to Los Angeles and A-list executive meetings.

Winners and finalists alike have had their screenplays optioned and produced and have secured high-profile representation as well as lucrative writing deals.

Deadlines and Entry Fees

♦ Early: March 13, 2019 ($45 entry fee)

♦ Regular: June 18, 2019 ($55 entry fee)

♦ Late: July 9, 2019 ($65 entry fee)

♦ Last Chance: July 23, 2019 ($75 entry fee)

Contest Prizes

♦ Two Grand Prize winners are flown to Los Angeles and introduced to producers and executives AND receive a NYFA Fellowship.

♦ Over thirty past winners have sold scripts, received representation, or gone on to professional writing careers.

Best Screenwriting Contests #6: PageScreenplay Contest

Over the years the Page Awards have become widely recognized as one of the most important screenwriting competitions. It’s become one of the premiere sources for new writing talent within the Hollywood community and worldwide.

Each year dozens of top producers, agents, and development execs judge the contest and read the winning screenplays.

Many of the winning writers have landed script assignments, secured representation, and signed option agreements on their work. And many now have movies and television shows in production, on the air, and in theaters.

Deadlines and Entry Fees

♦ Early: January 15, 2019 ($45 entry fee)

♦ Regular: February 15, 2019 ($55 entry fee)

♦ Late: March 15, 2019 ($65 entry fee)

♦ Last Minute: April 15, 2019 ($75 entry fee)

Contest Prizes

♦ $25,000 for Grand Prize winner

♦ $1,000 for Gold Prize winners

♦ $500 for Silver Prize winners

♦ $250 for Bronze Prize winners

In addition, along with co-sponsors InkTip, TV Writers Vault, and Roadmap Writers, they will actively publicize and promote your winning script. This gives you a shot at the ultimate prize: the chance to get your screenplay produced.

Best Screenwriting Contests #7: SundanceScreenwriters’ Lab

Out of all the top screenwriting contests listed, this is the only one to feature a five-day writing retreat with top professional screenwriters.

The lab was created by Robert Redford in 1981 and has proved itself to be one of the very best ways to break into the industry for an aspiring screenwriter. Every year, Sundance Institute provides over $400,000 in financial support to aspiring screenwriters, filmmakers, directors through a series of fellowships and labs.

Deadlines and Entry Fees

♦ TBC Deadline: approx. May 2019 ($40 application fee)

♦ Date of Lab: January 2020

Contest Prizes

The Sundance Screenwriters’ Lab gives independent screenwriters the opportunity to work with creative advisors on their feature scripts. This is done through a series of one-on-one story sessions and the best films have the chance to screen at the Sundance Film Festival.

Best Screenwriting Contests #9: BlueCatScreenplay Competition

This is one of the best screenwriting competitions to enter if you’re an international screenwriter looking to break into the film industry. Their Fellini award is $5000 and given to a screenwriter from outside the US.

Winners of the BlueCat screenplay competition have gone on to start careers in the industry having been signed by a talent agency, sold their scripts or won major film festival awards.

Best Scriptwriting Contests #10: Cinestory FoundationFellowship

Cinestory is a script writing competition with an outstanding track record in launching screenwriters’ careers. Top scripts are requested by companies such as Paradigm, The Lisa Callamaro Agency, Energy Entertainment and many more.

Finalists’ prizes include cash but, probably more importantly, a one-year fellowshipand screenwriting retreat in which they’re paired with a Hollywood professional to mentor their career.

Deadlines and Entry Fees

Feature Retreat:

♦ Early: January 2, 2019 ($55 entry fee)

♦ Regular: February 4, 2019 ($65 entry fee)

♦ Late: March 11, 2019 ($75 entry fee)

♦ Extended Late: April 15, 2019 ($80 entry fee)

♦ Date of Retreat: October 19 – 22, 2019

Contest Prizes

♦ Cash prize of $10,000

♦ 12-month fellowship program with two industry mentors ($9000 value)

At the retreat, three 90-minute one-on-one sessions with working Hollywood agents, managers, producers, development executives and other pros to discuss the writer’s work and career strategy.

Bonus Contest: Save the Cat!Screenplay Challenge

Save the Cat! has just premiered their first screenplay challenge and their premise is simple: “A screenplay competition that uses the same language the writer, the reader and the decision makers use.”

Their focus is on structure and marketability to help set participants up for successful pitch meetings and script submissions. All screenplay submissions receive feedback in the form of a report containing 50 points of analysis based on the Save the Cat! beat sheet methodology.

Deadlines and Entry Fees

♦ Regular Deadline: January 31, 2019: $135 USD

♦ Late Deadline: February 22, 2019: $140 USD

♦ Extended Deadline: March 15, 2019: $145 USD

Contest Prizes

Grand Prize Winner

♦ Live table read to bring your work to life

♦ 3-day trip to LA ($600), 3-night hotel stay ($1200)

♦ In-person pitch to an LA-based production company, Treehouse Pictures

Here’s my story. 25 years ago I entered my first screenwriting competition and got second runner-up in with no prices. Last year I got into the quarterfinals and second rounders for Scriptapalooza and the Austin Film Festival competition. From that I decided to enter one of those screenplays into a bunch of smaller ones and didn’t get placed at all. I realized that I would rather spend my money on script coverage instead and perhaps with those rewrites go back.

My co-writer and I won the BlueCat Screenplay Competition for 2018. We used Script Reader Pro and their notes really made a huge difference in the rewrites. Very thankful for having found this website.

If you’re a new writer looking for reinforcement that you have any talent for this, take your best work and enter it in on of the top script competitions. Place reasonably well, and then put the knowledge that you don’t suck at this in your back pocket and start writing to sell. That’s my advice.

I think the top few contests those you mentioned above are worth taking a shot at and can bring readings and connections and open doors, but they should only be entered once you have developed your craft and written a few screenplays that you would dare to be read by someone in the industry.

Tremendous article. I’ll lay down my screenwriting contest experience swiftly. I entered a few screenplay competitions over a four year period after finishing my first three scripts with absolutely no luck, not even a placement. I got a job in the industry, but no one took me seriously as a writer, because no wanted to read an accountant or production assistant’s script. Why would they? I finally did my research and entered the Nicholl screenplay competition. I made the semi-finals out the gate, then I put it up on the Black List site and received a 9 rating. The script was then selected for their Lab, which was amazing. I was mentored by Brian Koppelman and Billy Ray, who both said it was one of the finest scripts they’d ever read.

I have won 8 awards to date for my animated/live action musical The MicroCosmic Cartoon Show. Some are festivals and some are screenwriting competitions. You only mention a few of the good ones to submit to, yet there are more quite reputable ones such as:
Worldfest, Oaxaca, Filmmatic, and Write Movies, to mention others. I think it is a mistake to only go for the top tier. You want to have eyeballs on your work so that you get a sense of how it is being received in the marketplace. I prefer ones that have a variety of sub-categories, since my genre is pretty unusual.

I was going to go full time into screenwriting after I retired. I was in the music and comedy industry for 40 years. However, my issue is that I was exposed to Agent Orange when I was in Vietnam in 1969. (thebooksnafu.com) and don’t know how much longer I have to live. Would I be wasting my time and money to even make the attempt?

I’ve won or placed in a few of these, but honestly I think you’d be remiss to not include TrackingBoard/Launch Pad Pilot Launch on here.That was the one I received the most industry introductions from.

I did receive bad feedback the first year I submitted to screenwriting contests. I submitted to 4 and didn’t advance in any of them. But it didn’t send me down. I worked harder, wrote 2 new scripts and submitted again and got into the 2nd round in AFF.

I have written a fiction fiction novel of 410 pages and ready for publishing as book. I m from India. Writing more than 10 novels as per script of Hollywood style movie. Please tell how I can sale or submit it.

There are good screenplay competitions and bad ones. Some give you cash, some give you opportunities or makes doors open and ultimately get your script to screen.
Want a genuine career? Enter the big renowned screenplay competitions and hopefully place high or win. Get that on your writing resume and query letters.
Have one good script and wanna win some cash and throw the hat in the ring? Then go for something that is less reputable where the focus is just money and maybe judges less harsh on their standards.
If you enter every screenwriting competition, you’ll be broke pretty quick. So choose wisely.
I was semi-finalist in Stage 32 2017 screenplay competition. Never had a phone call or email from anyone and still have no agent. Smaller and medium studios have all responded positively to query letters and most have said they want the script but the budget is too high. They love it but simply can’t do it. Lesson – make sure your first script is a simple, affordable one that appeals to a wide range of studios and producers. Sadly, my script would only appeal to major studios and I have no chance of getting it in front of them as I am a first time writer with no agent.

Nicholl, PAGE and Sundance are the three most prestigious contests and definitely worth entering if your script fits the bill. (Dramas and Historical Films do best in Nicholl. PAGE has multiple genre categories.) Everyone always likes Austin because the Festival is such fun and such a good networking opportunity, but that contest now gets something like 10,000 entries each year, so your odds of winning are next to zero. Plus, not sure their contest winners really get much traction. Anyhow, good luck to all in your quest! It’s tough to break in as a screenwriter, but it’s so rewarding once you do!

A few years back, I won the Austin Screenwriting Competition. The screenplay I had this huge success with never placed in any other screenplay competition, which goes to show that the whole process is quite subjective and what works well in one script contest, might not get you anywhere in another one.

There are some good screenplay competitions – if your work is good enough, although many push the paid-for rewrite notes aspect a bit hard. However, I’d recommend avoiding The Shore Scripts Competition. Really insulting. They failed to send me the updates/notifications they promised. When I queried this and asked them to send the emails which had never arrived, they started contradicting me. I then asked them to resend the emails, they ignored this, and got ruder. I asked them to either resend the promised notifications or refund the fee, and to identify which employee was sending these emails. They then went silent – which says it all. Zero out of 10 – that’s not the way to treat customers and representing £55 very poorly spent on an amateurish setup with its strange mix of well known and poor judges.

Exactly what I wanted to know, thank you! I have a script that the Nicholl Fellowship judges said would likely attract The Hangover type of audiences. I can imagine this script would also do well in the Austin screenwriting competition – I’ll give it a go this year.

In essence, I think, plan a strategy and a working bit part that nobody has been equipped to think of yet. Basically take the “beat” premise that is very unclear and overused to find another example of notifying and understanding to enhance the reader. I have got one of these taken really from a shooting draft script and worked it into competition “Not telling you because it’s my idea.” …Sorry. Also for quality situations just evaluate the final piece for a week or so and do not rush. Prepare for that when you win one. Good luck — break a leg and stuff.

I have been entering several of my scripts to the top 3-4 contests listed here for years. What I found out was: A. It’s a waste of money B. The majority of the time the readers used by these contests are a bunch of nobodies. A little background on this: I’ve been in the business in different capacities for years. I have had three of my scripts optioned for 10k each by notable producers and production companies. I have entered those three scripts into Nicholl, Austin and Slamdance and not one of them even made it to the quarter finals or second round. Then, last year I was contacted by several of these screenwriting contests to be a judge. And what happens is this: they send you 30-40 scripts to read. You don’t have to read any of them and I suspect most judges don’t. You let the contest know which script(s) you feel should advance. You don’t have to write any coverage or make any notes. I’m certain most scripts don’t get read, hence, the reason while most people never hear any positive news from these contests. Don’t waste your money.

Hi, I’m a BRIT, and the Blue Cat international competition seems a good bet, thanks for the advice.
But in truth can you tell me if my protagonist needs to be an American, in a foreign land, to increase the chances of a recommend?

I stopped entering screenwriting contests a while ago even though I was a semi and quarter finalist at two well respected contests and instead have invested in shooting short films that are now award winning and gaining traction as time goes by. Entering screenwriting contests is like playing the lotto in most cases. Years will go by and no one will have never heard of you or your work. In that respect, it’s about “them” meaning Hollywood and not about those of us who actually do the work. At least today there’s ways you can have your work seen regardless of what Hollywood or anyone thinks is prize worthy.